Quecreek Mine Rescue exhibit slated for May

What better place to remember a miracle in a mine than the Windber Coal Heritage Center?

By May of next year the center, which specializes in telling the tales of coal miners and their families, while teaching of the lifestyle, plans to open an exhibit based on the Quecreek Mine Rescue.

With a price-tag of at least $100,000, Windber Coal Heritage Center Director Christopher O. Barkley said a mix of talent from local to national is being drawn upon.

"We want the same quality of exhibits we have in the center now," said Barkley. "State of the art high tech and low tech as well as sensory."

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One local and two national talents have been tapped, with WCHC collaborating with each for their unique skills.

"We see this permanent exhibit as maybe a springboard to a mobile exhibit," said Barkley.

Barkley said he expects the exhibit to encompass one level of the museum. Right now, it appears the tale will be told in the basement space, transformed from its current mining exhibit.

The process to get here has been long and winding. The Blue Ribbon Committee, created of community members and advised by all 18 miners, has worked through the themes of what type of exhibit would be serve the memory of the dramatic rescue and daring escape.

"We want to keep the artifacts and stories alive in Somerset County," he said. "We think this has national appeal. It has local appeal."

It is slated to open May 1, 2005.

Perfect timing in Barkley's eyes.

"We feel that we have a museum that's 7-years-old and needs to be fresh."

The first phase of the exhibit will be a timeline, utilizing artifacts to tell the story.

"And then we add to it," said Barkley. "This stuff is one-of-a-kind… The artifacts tell the story of the rescue very well. We think we're prepared to tell that."

He said it will be titled, simply, as the Quecreek Mine Rescue.

Artifacts collected and donated to date are close to the 200-mark, while oral history will be a big part of the exhibit as well. A total of 83 have already been collected.

Barkley said promises are still outstanding on a number of other items as well.

"We have some we're waiting for that haven't come in."

But, for now, the history that has been collected more than tells the tale of 18 men and their fight to survive.

From the phone used to warn the first nine men who escaped, to the clothes worn by the men, every aspect of the rescue has been recorded.

Barkley said the clothing is a vital piece to the exhibit.

"The clothing is important because it's really what they were wearing when they were trapped."

Even the legendary blue button-down shirt worn by former Gov. Mark Schweiker all three days of the rescue is part of the collection.

"That's kind of a classic," said Barkley.

And it isn't alone.

Each item possesses a certain uniqueness, a certain ability to show someone else's part in the story. Whether it is the warming blanket used on the journey to the hospital, or the crucial equipment used to pinpoint where the men were and provide them with air, he said each piece is priceless.

"Most of them are invaluable to someone who knows the story of the rescue. You can't set a price on it because they were used in the rescue."

Even President George W. Bush has a piece of the rescue. The microphone used to contact the miners underground was presented to him on a plaque. Barkley said it could be destined for a presidential museum one day.

It still doesn't top what Barkley deems as the most vital piece: The map of the Saxman and Harrison Mines, a document that could have prevented the 77-hour ordeal.

The entire tale can't be told in the center however. That means visiting the site of the rescue, Dormel Farms along Route 985, owned by the Arnold family and WCHC to get the full perspective.